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Neural Correlates of Reward and Punishment Processing During Gambling-Based Decision-Making: A Simultaneous EEG-fMRI Study

Authors :

Elias Ebrahimzadeh¹ Amin Mohammad Mohammadi² Ahmad Hammoud³ Lila Rajabion⁴ Hamid Soltanian-Zadeh⁵

1- دانشگاه تهران دانشکده علوم مهندسی 2- دانشگاه تهران دانشکده علوم مهندسی 3- دانشگاه مسکو 4- دانشگاه نیویورک 5- دانشگاه تهران دانشکده علوم مهندسی

Keywords :

simultaneous EEG–fMRI،Reward processing،Gambling-based decision-making،Win/loss gambling task،(feedback-related negativity (FRN

Abstract :

Understanding the neural feedback mechanisms underlying cognitive decision-making during reward and punishment processing is essential for elucidating brain function. In this study, we present the first simultaneous electroencephalography (EEG)-functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) investigation of a modified gambling task paradigm, employing a General Linear Model (GLM) approach. In this study, we enrolled 24 participants and acquired simultaneous high-density 65-channel EEG and fMRI recordings to investigate neural correlates of reward and punishment processing during a modified gambling-based decision-making task. We extracted time-series data of event-related potential (ERP) components from EEG signals and modeled them using a Generalized Linear Model (GLM) framework. Unlike conventional sensor-level EEG analyses in EEG-fMRI studies, our method operates directly in the source domain, providing enhanced spatial resolution for identifying neural substrates of decision-making processes. Our findings demonstrate robust activation not only in canonical reward-processing regions identified in previous studies, but also reveal significant involvement of the olfactory cortex and fusiform gyrus - areas frequently overlooked in such investigations. The data show distinct yet overlapping neural substrates for reward and punishment processing: while the orbitofrontal cortex and insula respond to both winning and losing outcomes, we observed differential activation patterns for each condition. Specifically, winning stimuli preferentially engaged the superior orbitofrontal gyrus and anterior cingulate cortex, whereas losing stimuli activated the inferior frontal gyrus, cingulate cortex, and medial superior frontal gyrus. These results provide novel insights into the neural mechanisms of reward processing, advancing our understanding of functional neuroanatomy in decision-making. Furthermore, our ERP-informed fMRI approach establishes a new methodological framework for investigating neurovascular coupling, offering enhanced spatiotemporal precision in mapping cognitive processes to their neural substrates